Amit Shah, Yogi take holy dip in Sangam, meet seers
Comes days before the proposed Feb 17 visit of Shankaracharya to Ayodhya
PRAYAGRAJ : BJP president Amit Shah, CM Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday took a holy dip in the Sangam in Prayagraj, where the 49-day Kumbh Mela is underway. Shah offered prayers, performed Ganga aarti and paid obeisance to the Akshayvat, the immortal banyan tree inside the Akbar’s Fort, before meeting seers. Shah’s visit assumes significance amid rising demand by various Hindutva groups that the government should bring in a law to start early construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
PRAYAGRAJ : BJP president Amit Shah, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and other leaders on Wednesday took a holy dip in the Sangam in Prayagraj, where the 49-day Kumbh Mela is underway.
Shah offered prayers, performed Ganga aarti and paid obeisance to the Akshayvat, the immortal banyan tree inside the Akbar’s Fort, before meeting seers.
Shah’s visit assumes significance amid rising demand by various Hindutva groups that the government should bring in a law to start early construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
The visit also comes days before the proposed February 17 visit of Jyotishpeeth Shankaracharya Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati to Ayodhya from Kumbh-2019 to perform ‘bhumi pujan’ for the temple.
A number of seers including Juna Akhada Peethadheeshwar Swami Avdheshanand Giri, president and secretary of the Akhil Bharatiya Akhada Parishad (ABAP) Mahant Narendra Giri, Mahant Hari Giri, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, Parmarth Niketan’s president Swami Chidanand, Yamuna Puri, Kailashanand, Ram Kamal Das Vedanti and Prem Giri were present while Shah took the holy dip.
Ayodhya land dispute case litigant Mahant Dharam Das, UP deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, UP BJP president Mahendra Nath and state minister Nand Gopal Gupta ‘Nandi’ were also present on the occasion.
After the holy bath, Shah and Yogi performed ‘Ganga aarti’ and prayed for electoral success of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the parliamentary elections.
After paying obeisance to the Akshayvat, they visited the camp of Juna Akhada Peetadheeshwar Swami Avdheshanand Giri and shared a meal with seers. The two leaders also visited the camps of Niranjani, Nirmohi and Bada Udasin akhadas.
Shah later met another prominent seer Karshni Shree Guru Sharnanand at his camp and then proceeded to Maujgiri Ashram on Bank Road before heading for airport in the evening.
Shankaracharya skips meet with Shah
BJP chief Amit Shah and UP CM Yogi Adityanath were also scheduled to meet Puri Peeth Shankaracharya Nishchalanand Saraswati at his camp after 2 pm but the seer left for Puri at around 12.30 pm without meeting them.
Though the development was downplayed by many seers and BJP leaders, the move did attract attention as the other Shankaracharya, Swami Swaroopanand Saraswati, has already expressed his disappointment with the BJP over delay in Ram temple construction.
Earlier in the day, former Rajasthan chief minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia and yoga guru Baba Ramdev had met Shankaracharya Nishchalanand Saraswati at his Kumbh camp.